Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 57:4

"My soul is among lions; I lie among them that are set on fire, Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, And their tongue a sharp sword." — Psalms 57:4 (ASV)

My soul is among lions - That is, among people who resemble lions; men who are fierce, savage, and ferocious.

And I lie even among them that are set on fire - We have a term of similar meaning in common use now, when we say that someone is inflamed with passion, referring to one who is infuriated and enraged. So we speak of burning with rage or wrath—an expression derived, perhaps, from the inflamed appearance of a man in anger.

The idea here is not that he would lie down calmly among those persons, as Professor Alexander suggests, but that he actually did lie down in this way. When he laid himself down at night, when he sought repose in sleep, he was surrounded by such people and seemed to be sleeping in the middle of them.

Even the sons of men - Yet they are not wild beasts, but men who seem to have the ferocious nature of wild beasts. The phrase sons of men is often used to denote men themselves.

Whose teeth are spears and arrows - Spears and arrows in their hands are what the teeth of wild beasts are.

And their tongue a sharp sword - The mention of the tongue here refers, probably, to the abuse and slander to which he was exposed, and which was like a sharp sword that pierced even to the seat of life. See the notes at (Psalms 55:21).